WAYNESBURG, Pa. (February 8) – In a game that featured 24 lead changes and 13 ties, the Waynesburg University men's basketball team was defeated 79-72 by Westminster in the Rudy Marisa Fieldhouse on Saturday.
The Yellow Jackets honored Waynesburg men's basketball alumni spanning from the 1970s through the 2020s at halftime.
Waynesburg falls to 7-14 on the season and 5-11 in Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) play. Westminster works a split in the season series to move to 7-14, 4-12 PAC. The Jackets sit three games out of sixth place with four contests remaining in the regular season.
Neither team led by more than two possessions until the final minute of regulation. Westminster led 12-6 just over four minutes into the contest but Waynesburg responded with a 12-2 run with five different players scoring in the spurt.
The Jackets went ahead 32-27 late in the first half after a 10-2 string but the Titans closed the period with an 8-2 response and went into the half up 35-34.
On the eighth lead change of the second half, Waynesburg went ahead 47-45 on a Jaylen Davis (Cleveland Heights, Ohio / Cleveland Heights) jumper. A basket by Casey Keesee (Tipp City, Ohio / Bethel) and another bucket by Davis put the Jackets up 51-46 with 13 minutes left in regulation. Westminster scored the next five points and the teams traded the lead seven more times.
Waynesburg went ahead 66-65 with four minutes left on a pull-up jumper by Jalen Goins (Morgantown, W.Va. / Morgantown). The Titans notched the next two baskets to lead 69-66 and salted the game away at the free throw line, making 10-of-14 foul shots in the final three minutes to seal the conference win.
Antone Baker (Maple Heights, Ohio / Maple Heights) turned in a 22-point, 19-rebound double-double. Davis set a season-high with 13 points on 6-of-7 shooting with nine rebounds. Goins and PJ Suggs (Twinsburg, Ohio / Twinsburg) each finished with 10 points and Suggs added four steals.
The Jackets outrebounded Westminster 44-34 in the game and had two fewer turnovers. Waynesburg attempted 17 more shots and made four more field goals than the Titans but Westminster outscored the Jackets 19-6 at the foul line.
The Jackets take on Saint Vincent at home on Wednesday night.